Tim is home.........

Tim has been home since Monday evening, it took him a couple of days to get sorted out with the pain killers he's taking. One lot gave him terrible trapped wind and he now understands why babies cry with trapped wind, it's so painful. He's also not had much of an appetite, but that is slowly coming back, and he's been sleeping a lot. But for Tim, that is good, as that is the way he heals himself when he's ill.
We've had a couple of trips out into Whitby, the first on Tuesday for Tim to get a new prescription for his glasses. He walked so slowly that snails were hooting at him so they could pass, and he was totally wiped out for the next 2 days. His new glasses were ready on Friday and though he was still walking slowly, he was not as bad.
Once you loose the use of one arm, you start to realise just how much you use it and here are some task to try with one hand -

• Fasten shirt/blouse buttons
• Wash the arm pit of the one hand you can use - in Tim's case - the right arm pit
• Tie shoe laces
• Fasten an open ended zip
• Get wine from a wine box
• Open child proof medicine bottles

The list is endless, but these few will get you thinking.
People from the village have been great and so have our families, but Tim has been told, that just because he's hurt his hand, it's no excuse not to go carol singing later in the month!!!!

On his release from hospital, speaking to the consultant we've learnt a bit more about what has been done to Tim's hand. One thing the surgeon has done is re route a blood supply from above his elbow, over the top of his thumb to feed the new skin graft. This has meant that the splint he's been fitted with can't have a strap across the thumb to hold it in place. It gave the hand therapist a bit of a challenge. But the exercises she gave Tim are giving him a challenge as well. He has to do them 4 times a day, anymore and it won't help, any less and he will have problems moving his fingers!!!!